Chapter 263 I'm on a date with my students? (II)
(POV: Lumiere)
Lon Renzo Wears was a special boutique owned by a friend of Ruri?s uncle, Baron Josip Grumer Goldfield. He was quite a well-known man, and this was because I'd seen him once or twice at the Royal Mansion when he'd come to supply jewelry to my father.
Naturally, there was no use telling them that.
At this point, I was instinctively neglecting all talks about my family or questionable royal heritage.
...
The Lon Renzo Wears boutique.
A luxurious and elegant place— filled with racks upon racks of exquisite garments.
I'd just finished changing out of my formal attire, opting for a more casual aristocrat wear.
A crisp white dress shirt, perfectly tailored black pants, and shiny black shoes completed my ensemble.
As I buttoned up my shirt, I stepped out of the dressing room, and the moment Anastasia and Ruri laid eyes on me, their gazes were filled with awe.
"Steam blew out of their noses, huh? That's quite the reaction," I chuckled, glancing at them.
"Oh, darling, you look so pretty."
I raised an eyebrow at Anastasia?s choice of words, amused.
"Don't you mean handsome?"
Anastasia closed the distance between us, sneaking up behind me and sensually placing her hand on my waist.
"No, pretty. It brings out those little curves you have, and it's almost too attractive."
I gently nudged her away, a smile playing on my lips.
"Alright, that's enough."
Ruri approached from behind, her delicate fingers carefully placing a purple bow in my hair.
Anastasia glanced at it and commented, "It'd look even better if it were braided."
I let out a sigh, shaking my head. "Come on, that's enough teasing."
Kennedy chuckled softly, clearly amused by the playful banter.
I slid my hands into my pockets and turned to face Anastasia and Ruri.
"Alright, alright, enough distractions. Do you two want anything?"
Ruri politely declined, saying she was perfectly fine.
Anastasia, on the other hand, couldn't hide hers.
"Oh, I definitely want something."
"Like?"
"Hmm. Anything you pick out for me will be okay at the very least."
I rolled my eyes playfully, sarcasm oozing from my words.
"Well, gee thanks."
I made my way towards a rack of clothes, but a better idea suddenly popped into my mind. I selected two stylish coat-like robes, one in a vibrant green for Anastasia and another in a beautiful blue to match Ruri's eyes.
Ruri declined a few more times but conceded after some persuasion from me.
They slipped them over their dresses, admiration shining in their eyes.
Kennedy praised my choice.
"My, my, you've made an excellent selection, young sir. These robes will surely come in handy seeing as winter is upon us..."
"Yeah, that's why I picked it up... So they don't catch a cold.."
<Few minutes later>
The clothes cost 1 gold and 80 copper in total.
Which cost a lot for just some clothing, but Argentia as a hub for commerce was the definition of polite highway robbery.
I changed into my regular attire.
Then, Ruri took the purchased clothes from me. She insisted on helping me pack them up.
"Are you sure? I can handle it myself," I said.
She tugged at the clothes playfully and replied, "I can handle it."
I pulled it my way, "But, it wouldn't be fair to let a lady do such a thing."
She pulled it back gently, insisting, "I appreciate the offer, but I can manage."
"But wouldn't that be unnecessary," I pulled it back.
Ruri finally took it out of my grasp with a smile. "I insist," she said.
"Well, thanks," I replied, scratching the back of my neck.
Meanwhile, Anastasia turned to Kennedy and asked if he knew of a great place to eat.
Kennedy stroked his white beard thoughtfully and responded, "Ah, there's Lana's Delight."
Anastasia raised an eyebrow. "Lana's Delight? What's that?"
I chimed in, "It's a restaurant company owned by Lana, the king's third daughter."
Lana had a continental eatery business, she used this to generate income so I wasn't surprised they had one here.
Anastasia commented, "Wow, you sure seem to know a lot about the royal family, a fan?"
I chuckled and shrugged, teasingly saying, "Well, maybe if you read more, you'd know too."
Taking offense, Anastasia marched up behind me and argued, "I do read, a lot!"
I chuckled, saying, "If you did, then your grades would be higher than Luna's."
Anastasia huffed and called me a jerk.
Ruri quietly observed our exchange until I turned to her and asked, "Was I being a jerk?"
Ruri covered her mouth and let out a delicate laugh.
She then replied with a smile, "No, Sensei?s an awesome person."
I nodded several times, turning to Anastasia and saying, "See? Just an awesome person."
As we prepared to leave the boutique, Kennedy was still standing in place, observing us.
I reminded him, "Aren't you joining us?"
Kennedy snapped out of his thoughts and hurried after us.
What was on his mind?
"Oh yes, my mistake," he said, gently closing the door behind us.
...
After finishing our meal at Lana's Delight, we made our way back to the carriage.
As we settled inside, I let out a groan of discomfort.
Anastasia turned to me, a puzzled expression on her face, and inquired, "What's wrong now?"
I sighed deeply and complained, "There's no way a plate of that food could cost 30 silver. I barely ate anything and I'm still starving."
Ruri interjected, "But isn't that the standard for noble delicacy?"
I shrugged, not entirely convinced, and replied, "Well, I guess it's just not my cup of tea."
It was a bit painful to have even eaten that food.
The average commoner used about 5 coppers to eat a day. Then if they had a family they'd spend about 15 coppers give or take. Even multiplied by ten, this barely crossed the 1 silver threshold. Thinking about this made me feel like I wasn't doing enough to change this world.
Sure, I'd helped a good number of people, but I hadn't made any definitive change in the world.
Which was probably because of the type of person I was...
Scared of messing it up, even with all the skills I had.
I knew this had to change at some point, or Serena and All-Father?s view of me would change.
At this point, I honestly didn't know what I was doing with my life.
Going on dates? Neglecting viscounty developments? Teaching students? That wasn't nearly enough...
Truth be told, Lucretia somewhat had more of an impact than I've had so far.
Or maybe I was giving myself too little credit.
Stretching in my seat, I suggested, "We should probably head back to the Dragon's Gate now."
Anastasia, stifling a yawn, agreed, "I guess so."
Kennedy, raising an eyebrow, added, "But it's still morning."
I acknowledged his observation and replied, "I know, but I have somewhere to be."
Lucilia wouldn't forgive me if I was late.
Kennedy nodded in understanding and asked, "Where exactly is this Dragon's Gate?"
I pointed southward and estimated, "It's about four kilometers from here."
Satisfied with the answer, Kennedy settled back into his seat.
As the horses guided us towards our destination, I felt a familiar presence by my side.
Umbra, my trusty dark spirit, had quietly materialized.
"Are you sure you don't want to do anything else?" Umbra whispered.
I arched an eyebrow and responded, "Like what?"
Umbra suggested, "Well, for these girls, this is supposedly a date with their competent teacher. Perhaps you should get them something to commemorate the occasion."
I murmured, understanding Umbra's point. "I see," I whispered back.
Ruri noticed my fleeting conversation and asked, concerned, "Is everything alright?"
I nodded reassuringly and assured her, "It's nothing."
In an instant, Umbra vanished from my shoulder, leaving no trace of his presence.
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